Denver Mayor Mike Johnston on Tuesday vetoed a new law to expand access to needle exchanges, one day after the measure was passed by the City Council.
Johnston described the ordinance as “the wrong solution at the wrong time” in a letter to the City Council released by his office Tuesday night.
“I support harm reduction strategies and also believe we need to place more emphasis on connecting individuals from needle exchange programs to substance misuse services to help them break the cycle of addiction,” Johnston wrote.
The ordinance would have allowed an unlimited number of needle exchanges in areas zoned for medical offices and removed the 1,000-foot buffer between the sites and schools or daycares.
Denver City Council approved the measure on an 8-5 vote. It takes a nine-vote supermajority to override the mayor’s veto, according to previous reporting.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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